impoverish
/ɪmˈpɒv(ə)ɹɪʃ/verb
impoverish is spelled I-M-P-O-V-E-R-I-S-H: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 12 million words in written English, the 102,771st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, impoverish means “To make poor” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in impoverish?
| Letters | 10: I-M-P-O-V-E-R-I-S-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 12 million words; the 102,771st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is impoverish?
Impoverish appears about once in every 12 million words in written English, the 102,771st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce impoverish?
- /ɪmˈpɒv(ə)ɹɪʃ/
Impoverish has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-impoverish.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of impoverish
- impoverishes present, singular, he/she/it
- impoverishing participle, present
- impoverished participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does impoverish mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To make poor.
- 2
To weaken in quality; to deprive of some strength or richness.
That exuberant crop quickly impoverishes any fertile soil.
- 3
To become poor.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Impoverish in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | appauvrir , s'appauvrir |
| German | arm machen, verarmen |
| Portuguese | empobrecer |
| Spanish | empobrecer, depauperar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does impoverish come from?
From Middle English empoverishen, impoverishen, empoverischen, enpoverisshen, Anglo-Norman empoveriss-, from Old French empoverir, from em- + povre, from Latin pauper (“poor”) (English poor).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).